Residence Inn by Marriott Downtown Norfolk

... John, Paul and Carter—who were the same crew that helped us bring the boat south after purchase in December 2006. We topped off our dinghy fuel. Dave awaited the arrival of a replacement B&G electronic component, having been assured that it would arrive prior to our departure. When it failed to arrive by the end of October he was beginning to reconcile himself to the fact that we would have to set sail without it.
Norfolk, Virginia, United States pas_de_deux

... Mount Trashmore got rained out. So those two were duds, forcing Josh to make 17th Street's Dawn of the Shred Josh's first competition, which mounted the pressures even more on him, and losing his chance for a prize.
Now I'm in the process of looking for more local competition in this month of November, so Josh can warm up and practice his wares, and nerves of steel, and bring his ...

... br>
Together the next day we motored in calm wind to St Michaels and walked through this very quaint town. We were rafted again for the evening.

On October 21 we motored in calm wind to Solomons. Donna piloted through the Poplar Island Narrows. We rafted with Our White Magic in Mill Creek near Solomons. The following day we sailed and motored to Indian Creek on winds SW 10-15 decreasing and backing. We had to motor the final 4 hours. We took ...

... We headed over the south tunnel then back via the north tunnel, flying the spinnaker for the run toward the Hampton Bay Bridge tunnel in winds up to 20 kts. Good thing we had Pete along to help douse the spinnaker which can be challenging in high winds!

During the remainder of the month, Dave replaced the suction and discharge filter housings on the watermaker. Apparently some air leakage prevented the watermaker from developing full pressure and ...

... visited a nearby marina and toured a custom boat named Chanty. A gorgeous piece of work. On September 11 we motored to the North River on Mobjack for a change of scenery, admiring the homes on the river bank including that of Chanty’s owner. The following day we returned to Willoughby Harbor Marina in light NW wind and flew our new secondary spinnaker. The color combination is quite wild but the sail flies well!

... we thought we would share with all of you:

1) We have a situation.
2) What's happening over there?
3) Jesus Christ
4) Jesus take the Wheel
5) Wait, where are we again?
6) Well....we had a good run..

Take care, and remember: Safety First...and check back for more updates. We have 7 more days...pray for us!

... over 24 hours, it would have been a >200 nm day.

Upon arrival we noticed the third mainsail batten from the top had come out of its end fittings. A couple other battens looked close to coming out. We suspected the new battens were cut a bit short and planned to contact Quantum Sails after our arrival in Norfolk. We were able to get the third batten back in place.

The next morning arrived with the wind forecast E 5-15 ...

... as the flat panel TV falls down on the seat below.....no harm done but an indication I had not expected the roll. Another 3 hours and we were looking to see how far we would get. We radioed Coinjock Marina and make sure they had a tie for us. We were tired and even though we could have anchored 3 miles short of the marina decided that a prime rib and a good bottle of wine were well earned. After having some waves break over ...

... with the spinnaker on fabulous 15-20 kt wind. Too bad it was a somewhat cloudy day with temperatures in the low 60s. We tested the water heaters on the engine for the first time and Dave was able to take a hot shower aboard Saturday night. We returned to Arlington a day early on Sunday due to foul rainy weather. We videotaped the highlights of our sail that we hope to show you soon!

... the French-manufacture fire extinguishers to their original positions but have purchased new ones required by Coast Guard regulations. Dave will be purchasing screws for the new fire extinguishers and the rod holders. We placed the new microwave on the countertop. You can probably tell we're starting to spend some money....We've been videotaping our progress--watch the clip attached!